Heptathlon

FEATURED ARTICLES ABOUT HEPTATHLON

Former Costa Mesa High standout Sharon Day, a 2008 Olympic high jumper, posted a personal-best performance in winning the heptathlon over the weekend at the inaugural America’s Combined Events Cup at the National Stadium in Havana, Cuba. Day, who is still in the early stages as a heptathlete in national competition, broke through with a winning total of 6,063 points. Her performance is the best by an American this year. Last year, Day, while at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, won the Big West Conference heptathlon title with 5,642 points.

TRACK AND FIELD Big West Conference Heptathlon NORTHRIDGE — UC Irvine sophomore Lauren Collins leads the Big West Conference heptathlon after Saturday's four events at Cal State Northridge, with the final three events to be contested today. Collins scored 3,389 points in the first four events, followed by Brittany Ricketts of Cal State Northridge (3,245) and Cal Poly's Sharon Day — a Costa Mesa High product — with 3,201 points. Collins had marks of 13.98 seconds in the 100-meter hurdles, 5 feet, 10 inches in the high jump, 34 feet in the shot put and 24.84 seconds in the 200 meters.

THE CAMPUS - Gwen Wentland, a former national high jump champion, has been named assistant coach for men's and women's track and field at UC Irvine, Anteater head coach Vince O'Boyle said. Wentland, a three-time NCAA All-American while attending Kansas State University, captured the high jump title with a mark of 6-5 at the 1995 United States Indoor National Championships. She still holds the world record in the pentathlon high jump with a mark of 6-4 and the American record in the heptathlon high jump at 6-4. She competed in four NCAA Championships with Kansas State and won three conference high-jump titles for the Wildcats.

Steve Virgen There will be many thoughts racing through Annmarie Turpin's mind today. If she's not too careful she might get too emotional. Who could blame her after what she has been through? Turpin, who tore her left anterior cruciate ligament two years ago, will be UC Irvine's one representative in the NCAA track and field championships in Sacramento. She will compete in the heptathlon today and Saturday. "It's been a long road, but fulfilling," said Turpin, a junior for UCI. "It's been a progression of emotions, from picking up the javelin for the first time, to being entered in my first heptathlon to completing my first heptathlon to getting a better score.

BASEBALL Southern California playoffs SAN MARCOS - Orange Coast College began Saturday with a 5-2 win over Palomar, but then lost, 1-0, and missed on its bid to reach Super Regional round after losing a best-of-three regional in the California Community College Athletic Assn. Southern California playoffs. Cody Bruder went two for three with a run batted in to help OCC (23-16) with the 5-2 win that tied the series, 1-1. Anthony Virgen had two RBIs and Danny Jimenez went two for four.

UC Irvine junior Annmarie Turpin is the first-day leader of the heptathlon after the first four events in the Big West Conference track and field championships at Cal State Northridge Wednesday. Turpin leads the 13-athlete field with 3,242 points, Idaho's Dacia Fernandez is second with 3,144, UCI senior Jessica Stafford is third with 2,998 points and defending champion Katie Farner of Utah State is fourth with 2,929. Turpin had a career-best time of 14.55 in the 100-meter hurdles (No. 7 in UCI history)

Newport's Adams signs Bonnie Adams, a Newport Harbor High senior standout for the Sailors' girls tennis team, has signed a letter of intent to play for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Adams, who helped lead the Sailors to the Sea View League title, teamed up with Vanessa Dunlap to win the Sea View League doubles championship. The duo reached the Round of 16 in the CIF Southern Section doubles tournament. Adams, a team captain who was voted MVP of the squad, also earned first-team all-league honors.

NEWPORT BEACH - Olympic hopefuls Wendi Ratjees and Anne Parker have formed a new youth track and field club at the Newport Beach YMCA. The track club meets Wednesday afternoons at 4 p.m. and Saturday mornings at 9 a.m. at the Newport Harbor High track. The participating athletes will have the opportunity to compete in local track meets sponsored by the USA Track and Field Association Youth Development Program. "The purpose is to educate the athletes on the proper mechanics of each event," said Ratjees, who finished sixth at the 2000 U.S. Olympic trials in the heptathlon.

BASEBALL Orange Coast 3, Irvine Valley 1 Daniel Delaney and Chris Iriart both went two for four with a run batted in for the Pirates in the Orange Empire Conference game Thursday. David Hill (7-0) struck out eight and walked one in his complete-game victory. He allowed six hits for for OCC (20-6, 8-4 in conference). IVC is 6-18, 2-10. — WOMEN'S TRACK & FIELD UC Riverside Spring Classic Invitational RIVERSIDE — UC Irvine sophomore Melanie Speech is in ninth place after the first day of the heptathlon.

Courtney Conlogue, an incoming senior at Sage Hill School, won the Assn. of Surfing Professionals Grade-4 Supergirl Pro Junior event in Oceanside Sunday. Conlogue recorded a 7.40 out of a possible 10 points during a single-wave score in the final, helping her edge out Malia Manuel of Hawaii, 12.90 to 12.40. Conlogue won $5,000 for her efforts. The prize is the largest in the history of ASP North America. Conlogue has been excelling. She won the women’s title at the International Surfing Assn.